Dale Murphy Rookie Card Remains Popular, Affordable

Just as his career seems to be undervalued, so is the first baseball card of one of the most popular players of the last 50 years. The 1977 Topps Dale Murphy rookie card is still extremely affordable, despite his status as one of the most accomplished players of the 1980s. It’s also very popular with collectors who remember his MVP seasons as they unfolded on “The Superstation”, Atlanta’s WTBS, which carried nearly every Braves game of Murphy’s career to an international cable audience.

He’s clearly the star of the four-player card that was #476 in the 660-card set. And yes, he’s on a “Rookie Catchers” card. Long-time fans recall that was his position at the time. Murphy had made his Atlanta debut behind the plate in 1976 and was still seeing most of his action there or at first base as the decade came to a close.

Murphy’s rookie card remains generally affordable. Ungraded, near mint examples can usually be had for under $25. Graded NM/MT copies might cost you $35-$45 while PSA 9 (mint) Murphy rookies have now pushed consistently north of $100. Rare gem mint 10s may reach $1,000 before long.

Along with Andre Dawson and Bruce Sutter, it’s among the better rookie cards in the 660-card 1977 Topps set.

Murphy’s “Other” Rookie Card

Murphy is also on an odd list: players who appeared more than once on a multi-player rookie card.

In 1978, Topps put Murphy on a Rookie Catchers card again. On this one, he’s joined by Bo Diaz, Lance Parrish, and Ernie Whitt. Some fans may think it’s Murphy’s actual rookie card, but it’s simply a second-year issue. While it carries a slight premium, partly because it’s Parrish’s rookie card, it’s an easy score for a very small investment.

From Catcher To Outfield

Murphy’s transformation from catcher in the minors to his eventual center field position wasn’t exactly the norm in those days nor now. Fans in this era might understand that move thanks to Philadelphia slugger Bryce Harper. How did the move help Murphy? He had a chance to put up big numbers without sacrificing his knees behind home plate on a nightly basis.

He ended up playing every game during a four-year stretch from 1982-1985. At one point, Murphy was in the running with Cal Ripken for consecutive games played. Murphy finished his career with 398 home runs. Would he have been able to play so many games (over 2,000 in his career) at catcher? Perhaps not. Joey Votto and Craig Biggio are other modern era stars who were initially brought up as catchers but switched to other positions. Murphy proved he could play outfield well with five Gold Glove awards. Let’s just say the switch turned out pretty well for Atlanta and Murphy.

Does The Hall Of Fame Await?

Murphy was the spokesman for Donruss in 1988, appearing on the company’s packaging.

While Murphy isn’t a Hall of Famer and may face long odds of eventually getting there, he remains one of the most beloved baseball players of an entire era . He’ll go down as one of the best and most popular to ever don a Braves jersey. He’ll undoubtedly be remembered with names like Chipper Jones, John Smoltz, Greg Maddux, and Tom Glavine even though he never did win a World Series ring with Atlanta. Hank Aaron might always be in his own stratosphere and still attached more so to Milwaukee teams. Murphy still has a place in the heart of many baseball fans across the nation.

The arguments against Murphy for the Hall are many-mostly statistic related. His career batting average of .265 definitely hurts his case. His total length of career was shorter than most. The arguments for him to make the Hall-are often based on the emotion and joy he brought to so many fans during the start of the cable television era.

The clean- cut family man who produced home runs and RBI on a consistent basis was the guy to watch during those games. It was hard not to root for him on “America’s Team.” He was the best player on a struggling Atlanta baseball club. Nearly every game was televised by WTBS. Murphy helped carry the Braves to the playoffs and won back to back Most Valuable Player awards in 1982 and 1983 and netted five Gold Gloves after moving to the outfield in 1980. He might have been the best player in baseball for a solid four or five-year stretch.

He’s a long shot to reach the Hall of Fame, but if the tide turns, a call from the Hall could lift the prices of all Murphy cards. Some wonder if Murphy is the best player at his position not in Cooperstown. It would take a vote from the Veterans Committee to get #3 into the HOF.

Joe Posnanski tried to answer the debate of whether “The Murph” is the best at his position not in the Hall a few years ago in an article for MLB.com.

“Because Murphy essentially was done at 32, he does not have the career numbers to make that claim. Kenny Lofton and the just-retired Carlos Beltran have more impressive career numbers. But you could certainly argue that at his peak, Murphy was as good as any center fielder not in Cooperstown — not counting Mike Trout, of course.”

Long time baseball writer Dan Schlossberg mentioned some distinct historical numbers in reference to why Murphy should be added.

“He not only had more total bases than anyone in the ‘80s but more home runs than Jim Rice, more MVPs than Hank Aaron, more RBI crowns than Willie Mays, and more home run crowns than Stan Musial.”

In a recent story on MLB.com, Mark Bowman points out players like Alan Trammell and Harold Baines being elected through the Era Committee process is good news for Murphy.

If Murphy is eventually a Hall of Fame edition, you can expect a sizable bump in his rookie baseball cards and signed memorabilia.

He continues to sign for Topps on a regular basis and has appeared on hundreds of cards since his career ended in the 1990s. You can see a list of ‘most watched’ Dale Murphy cards on eBay via the live list below.